So. Juka had been right all along. He took a deep breath and then exhaled it. Where did that leave him? He was placed into an unfamiliar situation having found someone who's experiences might just relate to his own and yet, clearly, they were different as well. He wasn't a child, for one, despite everything else. What did he do now? This hadn't exactly been something planned for.

"I'm 21 and I'm a mutant too." There, he had said it. His full secret was out and now he was at the mercy of a 16 year old child he didn't even know. Why did he do these things without thinking ahead anyway?

"As for my story," Juka shrugged. "There was a very bad woman hunting me and I didn't know what else to do. So, here I am a teenager when she's looking for a full grown adult." Adult. That was a funny word to describe him. His words were tinged with a bitterness he never used to feel.

Clyde quickly looked back up when the other student told him his “story.” Twenty-one? That was older than the average highschooler indeed. It sure explained why he caught on so fast. And, not only was he a mutant as well, but it seemed like he was one who somehow was able to pass for someone younger as well.

The age shifter might have asked why the guy was going to a high school if he was too old for one, but he'd already answered that, too. So apparently, a bad woman was after him? Though that did raise some questions, Clyde wasn't going to ask for anymore detail on that one. From the way the guy said it, it seemed to be one of those things he was better off not knowing any more about.

There was still the possibility that this was all part of an elaborate act to get him to talk, though it was getting smaller by the minute. After all, if someone was simply trying to get him to talk about his mutation so they could bully him later, they would've given up by now. Just to be on the safe side, Clyde decided to check anyways.

“That's quite a story,” Clyde responded, leaving the other highschooler to interpret that whichever way he wanted.

Juka could tell the kid wasn't going to be so easily convinced and that was probably understandable. He had chosen his age, to be younger and thus fly under the radar of his enemies but what if it hadn't been a choice? Not that he knew one way or another what his story was, but how terrible might it be to be trapped in the body of a child for all of eternity? He was pretty sure it wasn't something he could deal with.

"Look," Juka implored, keeping his voice low enough that only his target audience of one could hear, "I understand why you don't trust me. Probably I wouldn't either in your position. I'm a bit weird and haven't really shown you much to prove what I've said. Maybe you'd give me the opportunity to show you? Not in here, where everyone can see, but maybe in an empty classroom or something."

Probably he was being taken as desperate now and maybe he was; desperate for someone else who could understand. This was the closest he had come and he wasn't about to give up now.

Quietly, Clyde listened to what the guy had to say. Although he wasn't trying to be judgmental, he couldn't help but agree with the part about him being weird. However, thinking about it, going to a high school a second time after graduating had to feel odd, even if you looked like the other students. Appearing to be a completely normal highschool-aged student must have been very difficult, and therefore, he had to give him some credit.

The fact that he was offering, presumably, proof of his abilities wiped out the traces of doubt from Clyde's mind. He had to admit that he was curious about the nature of the other student's mutation, whether it was similar to his own or completely different. It didn't take him long to take up the offer.

“Hmm... what the heck, I guess I'd like to see,” Clyde replied in a low voice as well, standing up. It wasn't as if he had anything to do, so he might as well satisfy his curiosity, and perhaps, maybe learn a bit about his own mutation if they were similar enough. “What exactly can you do?”

Now that Juka was actually getting the opportunity to show off his powers to someone who might, just might, have some understanding of some of the things he had gone through he was actually rather excited. Besides, he was a showman and a performer at heart and not being able to do so was almost worse than the unusual experience of going through high school as a teenager a second time.

"Come with me then," Juka beckoned with a mischievous grin. "As for what I can do, well, I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise now would I?" He paused for a moment before realizing that there might be some concern about his powers actually being dangerous. "Don't worry though, I promise there's nothing dangerous about them."

It was just a matter of finding an empty classroom now. Of course, showing off his powers properly worked much better when outside, but privacy in the middle of the day negated that as an option. Alas, maybe one day he'd be able to perform properly again.

Show, then tell must have been the idea. Maybe demonstrating a mutation was easier than explaining it for some. Apparently, the “teen” wanted to make some sort of grand performance, complete with an assurance that the powers were completely safe. Yes, Clyde was curious about this guy's mutation, but he didn't see any need for him to go so over the top.

“I see,” he answered. The age shifter grabbed his backpack and, with some effort, slung it over his shoulder. “The suspense is killing me.” Those words, though spoken in a dull voice, reeked of sarcasm. He started to follow, not really amused by the excessively theatrical behavior.

By that time, something had occurred to him. He and the “highschooler” had been talking, and he'd enough to know that he was a mutant, too, but they hadn't even taken care of the most basic part of an introduction. “Anyways, I'm Clyde. What's yo name?” he asked.

So what if the kid didn't seem nearly as enthusiastic as Juka thought he should be. It was probably tough living his life so he could forgive that. If he could manage to bring a smile to his face, however, that would be his good deed for the day. He would probably even be light enough to bring on a proper bubble ride, but one thing at a time, of course.

“Anyways, I'm Clyde. What's yo name?”

Juka blinked, realizing that they hadn't actually exchanged names yet. "I'm Jared and the pleasure of this meeting is all mine, my dear." It still hurt a little not to be able to introduce himself as, well, himself but perhaps that was just his ego singing in his ear.

The first classroom with a closed door the two came upon was locked, or so Juka discovered after wiggling the handle. The second door, however, opened quite successfully. He ushered Clyde inside and prepared to close and lock the door behind them. It wouldn't do to have someone accidentally walk in on them. "So, my dear, are you ready?"

Clyde went with the guy, who called himself Jared, into the hall of one of the school buildings. He'd been a bit doubtful that there would be open classrooms, but, as it turned out, not all of the teachers kept them locked.

Wanting to make sure no one was in the room, Clyde quickly surveyed it as soon he walked in. Good, it was empty. He then went ahead and took a seat on top of one of the desks in the front of the classroom. Sitting up straight, he responded to Jared, “Of course. I'm ready.” He wondered what the ability did, since Jared didn't want to use it outside where others might see.

Door securely closed behind them, Juka took an elaborate bow before a giant bubble appeared around him. He grinned at Clyde before effortlessly lifting the bubble and him inside of it off of the ground and up to the ceiling before zipping all around the room and settling back onto the ground. A moment later the bubble disappeared, leaving no trace of its existence.

"I'm a bubbler and a fountain of youth. I can kind of control time inside my bubble. Well, sort of." He never really had figured out how to explain that part of his power, but that was just about as good a description as any. "So, you want a ride?" He waited and watched, anticipating the response of his audience of one.

With slight anticipation, Clyde waited for Jared to show off his abilities. He watched the guy as a bubble appeared around the him and he flew around the room. It seemed a bit like that character from Wizard of Oz. It certainly was a lot flashier than his own mutation. He couldn't deny it; it was impressive. Apparently, this bubble could also do some strange stuff, like manipulating time. He wasn't sure about how to ask questions about what he'd just seen without sounding childish, but nonetheless, there was a lot he wanted to ask about.

However, he wasn't so eager to take up Jared's offer. Facts were facts: Clyde simply did not do rides. “Emm... that's nice, but I'll pass,” he responded. “So, how'd you find out about it? That is, yo mutation?”

Juka bowed and grinned, seeing the admiration clear upon Clyde's cute little face. Or perhaps the admiration was half in his own mind, but that didn't really matter, did it? He knew he was fabulous and that really was the most important thing. If others didn't realize it that was their problem.

"Its your loss," Juka agreed with a careless shrug. "As for how I discovered my bubble, it just kind of happened one day. I was stressed and depressed and wanted to get away and suddenly, I could. It took a while to actually get the hang of it, of course, but that came in time." It wasn't the happiest time in his life but it was far from the worst. Probably his childhood hadn't been that terrible.

"So, what do you do exactly?"

“Ah. I guess flying's a good way to escape,” Clyde responded. He recalled when his shifting powers first showed up months ago, when he was feeling particularly upset about being teased. Maybe mutations had a way of manifesting in emotional situations.

Clyde then answered Jared's question. “I'm pretty sure people would call me an 'age shifter.' I guess I could show you a bit.” It wasn't often that Clyde used his mutation in front of other people, but since Jared had not only asked, but shown his as well, it seemed the fair thing to do.

Being overly cautious, Clyde shot a glance at the door to make sure it was still closed. He held his palm out straight in front of him, trying to give Jared a better view of what he was about to do. “Okay, heah it goes,” he said.

He then focused and did his best to mask the familiar compressing pain he felt while shifting. This time around, he went backwards only a couple of years, as he didn't want to suffer a wardrobe malfunction. He kept his shift in place for a few seconds, then let it snap back to normal. “Can't give much moh of a demo, though,” he remarked. “Clothes don't shift well.”

“Ah. I guess flying's a good way to escape,”

"Oh it is," Juka agreed with a grin. Of course, flying was only a good way to escape if there was somewhere to fly to but the kid didn't need to know about the less pleasant aspects of his past. Just because some bad things had happened to him didn't mean he should then become all emo about it.

"Age shifter, interesting." Juka watched in rapt interest as Clyde went backwards a few years. It was faster than his ability to alter his age, much faster. It was also an affirmation that he might need to help him protect himself. He might have been able to make himself and others young again and that might have caused him more grief than he could possibly imagine, but he had nothing on Clyde.

"Amazing," Juka stated honestly. "But be careful with that. I don't know if you can do that to others or not but...well, lets just say some people are selfish and will try to use you for your powers. The prospect of eternal youth is a powerful motivator and not everyone is so pure of intent as myself."

Clyde nodded in confirmation. His mutation as interesting? Maybe. But amazing? Definitely not. His powers didn't have any practical use that he knew about; they just made his life miserable. Though, he didn't want everyone pitying him for it, so he said nothing against it.

“Don't worry, I can't do it to othahs. It doesn't even last fo moh than a few howahs, anyways,” he reassured Jared. He may not have liked people knowing about his mutation, but as far as he was concerned, he had nothing to worry when it came to people exploiting it. Heh, if he could change other people's ages, some people he knew would've gotten a karmatic taste of his own situation. Amusing.

That thought aside, though, it was easy to see someone wanting to restore their youth, even if it meant hurting someone else. “Is that why the lady's aftah you?” he asked Jared. It sounded like some plot out of a science fiction novel, someone trying to hunt another to get young again. But, in a world with mutants, it didn't seem impossible, either.